As they prepared for their first studio full-length effort, Japanese retro metal worship cult Hellhound had a few challenges to overcome. Could they climb above the rank and file of generic tribute band biting off riffs and tweaking them to the legal definition of unique, and could Crossfire tighten up his own act like a sphincter to increase the level of compulsion the listener would feel at listening to him for a complete album of 'original' music? If the ensuing debut Tokyo Flying V Massacre is any indicator, the band had improved quite a lot in just a few years. Though the end result is hardly that much more memorable, it delivers a number of decent tracks among some that should have been scrapped permanently.

I was somewhat confused by the first track, "Metal Attack", which is essentially a chunk of the song "Heavy Metal Generation" from the Welcome to Metal Zone EP in 2004. It sounds a lot like Metallica's versions of "Blitzkrieg" and "For Whom the Bell Tolls", and not very interesting, though the production of this version is better than its original form. The confusion is that "Heavy Metal Generation" itself is also included as the finale of the album, which seems strange and a waste of space, unless the band had plotted this as some sort of 'reprisal' effect. The lyrics to both tracks are different, granted, but this was a redundancy best avoided. The track "Metal Zone" is also included upon the Tokyo Flying V Massacre, and as that was not very good in its original incarnation, it was also unnecessary, especially when the new originals are so much better.

Speaking of which, the namesake "Hellhound" is pure, raging old fun inspired by the British and German greats at the dawn of the 80s. Crossfire has somehow married his voice a little better to the music. Its the same meaty shrieking as the previous EP, but a little lower in the mix, which merges in with the thick, simple chords and driving rhythm section. When the backing vocals cut into the chorus, it works very well against his grating air raid siren domination. "Samurai Warrior" is a powerful if predictable speed metal anthem celebrating the near mythic historical figures from the band's homeland, and "Rock Like Hell" is basically AC/DC taken to Accept levels, with ballsy backing vocals. "Metal Assassin 666" spins off into darker, power/thrash territory, crunchy mutes building up to some of Crossfire's more insane screaming that reminds of Peavy Wagner on the early Rage records. We all know where the name "Take You Like a Hurricane" came from, but the song is pretty standard, mid paced metal with big grooves and siren-like shrieks. Two more 'metal' title songs round out the bunch (for a total of 6/10 of the album): "Heavy Metal Patrol" and "Metal Warrior", the latter of which is some charming and fuzzy speed metal.

If you can ignore the 'trist' of previously used material on this album, the remainder is actually quite a good time. All of the instrumentation has come together in unison with the vocalist, and I love the chunky tones and backing vocals. The band's leads fulfill the potential of the debut EP, and a few of the songs like "Metal Warrior", "Samurai Warrior" and "Take You Like a Hurricane" and "Metal Assassin 666" will stand out beyond just a few listens. Tokyo Flying V Massacre also has one of the best possible titles an album of this sort could ever possess, and the title alone makes you want to get excited. Unfortunately, the album is not wholly consistent enough to be considered 'good', but its a nice set-up for the following Metal Fire From Hell, which expands upon even this sound to produce something worthwhile if you're digging for Japanese hilarity.

Verdict: Indifference [6.5/10] (we're gonna show you tonight)

http://hellhound-japan.com/

Hellhound are another of those Japanese acts who take the roots of thrash and traditional heavy metal from the late 70s and early through mid 80s, mash them together and simply serve as concrete, humorous reinforcement to their proliferation and survival. They are hardly the first of their kind, as the great bands Abigail, Barbatos and Metalucifer had already been established by 2002 and cruising along into cult status for a sizable number of diehards; but still, Hellhound are pretty good at this, if you can shut down your expectations and desire nothing more than a headbanging good time that reverts you back to 1984 before you heard Master of Puppets or Reign in Blood and everything suddenly got more serious.

The Welcome to Metal Zone EP was their first honest to goodness recording, and though it previews some of the charm of their full-lengths Tokyo Flying V Massacre and Metal Fire from Hell, it could not be counted as among their strongest material. The band basically starts with a sound similar to Accept and Judas Priest and just runs with it. In fact, most of the songs here sound like some combination of "Fast as a Shark" and Ram It Down era Priest, veering ever so slightly into speed/thrash terrain, but not enough to make a difference. Vocalist Crossfire has one of those Brian Johnson/Udo Dirkschneider voices, but far more annoying, almost as if being performed as a caricature. Fortunately, unlike many other bands that pull this maneuver, you do get used to him. Another nice touch are the leads, which generally stand out from the very average riffing content that surround them. They're hardly original or mind bending solos, but one gets the impression that with better packaging they might be a force to be reckoned with.

The EP features five tracks, only two of which have the word 'metal' in the actual title, a practice this band will expand upon in the future. "Metal Zone" moves at a fast clip, like Accept with a seasoning of early Rage, gang shouts in the chorus and a pick and play, utterly simple set of riffs. "Flight of the Demon" is essentially a ripoff of "Balls to the Wall" with slightly paraphrased guitar lines, rather blatant about it. "Deathrider" is insanely Judas Priest, with simple NWOBHM chord patterns that flirt with speed metal, and Crossfire switching to a cleaner, lower register to offset his screaming. "Stormtrooper" is decent heavy/speed metal with some bluesy, burning guitars, and "Heavy Metal Generation" is another too familiar track, mixing in elements of "For Whom the Bell Tolls" and "Blitzkrieg" among others.

Without good vocals or good ideas musically, Welcome to Metal Zone quickly expires from the realm of curiosity. If it's meant to serve as a tribute or exclamation that these Japanese gentlemen enjoy classic metal of taste, well then it certainly delivers on that. The problem then lies in just what Hellhound are going to DO with these tastes, and this debut EP simply doesn't have an answer. Songs were written or stolen, laid out in some studio and then the band had something to gig on. Down the line, this band does manage to tighten their ideas and improve in the songwriting department, but in 2004 they were just not worth hearing yet, and they were surprisingly void of too much excess Engrish, expressing themselves clearly through most of the lyrics. Boo!

Verdict: Fail [4.75/10] (you're just a tribute for the ruler of the night)

http://hellhound-japan.com/

I'm often critical of humorous and idiotic retro metal bands within these pages, but occasionally an album comes along which is so beside itself with laughter, so ludicrous that I cannot resist its charms. Japan's Hellhound have released such an effort in the sequel to Tokyo Flying V Massacre. They basically mash up Rob Halford-esque screaming vocals with catchy classic speed/thrash metal, and the rest is pure enjoyment.

In keeping with tradition to this sort of self-mockery, half the song titles feature the word 'metal' in them. The album opens with the forceful title track "Metal Fire From Hell", and you'll also be introduced to the gang shouts and Udo-like rampage known as "Heavy Metal Highway", the NWOBHM flavored "Heavy Metal Education", and the filthy speed "Metal Psycho". There are other tracks as well, like the bluesy grooves of "Headcrusher" where the vocals become simply hysterical. "Too Wild to Tame" is one of the better tracks with a great old speed vibe below Crossfire's vocals. Yes, the vocalist/guitarist is named Crossfire, while the other band members have names like Swordmaster, Dragonblaster and let us not forget the other guitar player Lucifer's Heritage.

The album sounds quite old school but it's bold and crunchy, the vocals slice right through the riffs like an air raid siren. This album should appeal to fans of countrymen Metalucifer who have a similar tongue in cheek approach to their influences, if a little grimier sounding than this. The songs here are fun, the leads will have you throwing your horns in midair, and it's a little better than the debut album. Actually, you'll be throwing horns the entire time.

Verdict: Win [7.5/10]

http://hellhound-japan.com/